In a county focused on local control, two outsiders are now running elections

In January 2023, a Bay area local named Brent Turner reached out to Shasta Scout by phone with a promise to provide the “greatest story that’s never been written” about elections. He wanted to talk about something called open source voting, an alternative to the machine systems California currently uses.

Turner had just learned about Shasta County’s decision to end the county’s contract with Dominion Voting Systems, Inc. and referred to the decision as an “act of bravery.” He said former supervisor Patrick Jones, who spearheaded that decision, was “with the science” when it came to California-certified voting machines which Turner also believes cannot be trusted.

Last month, Shasta County’s newly appointed election official, Clint Curtis, hired Turner to help run the local election office. The new Assistant Registrar of Voters (ROV) says he has worked in a number of fields including real estate and has been focused on elections for the last twenty-five years.

Turner replaces long-term Assistant ROV Joanna Francescut, who was terminated by Curtis shortly after he was appointed. The new ROV did not post a job listing or follow a competitive process before hiring Turner, something that Shasta County Support Services Director Monica Fugitt said is allowed for at-will employees, citing the county’s personnel manual.



https://shastascout.org/in-a-county-focused-on-local-control-two-outsiders-are-now-running-elections/